• by Karl Greenberg , February 3, 2011

The National Hockey League is launching a dual-language advertising push in Canada and the U.S. to promote the upcoming 2011 Tim Hortons NHL Heritage Classic and to talk about hockey's roots. The effort, which will air on CBC, RDS and Versus, promotes the outdoor hockey game between the Montreal Canadiens and host Calgary Flames at McMahon Stadium.

The game is the first NHL regular season game contested outdoors in Canada since the Edmonton Oilers hosted the Canadiens in the first Heritage Classic in 2003, and the second regular season outdoor game played this year. The first was the Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic on New Year's Day in Pittsburgh, where the Penguins played the Washington Capitals.

The campaign, developed by the NHL in consultation with global advertising agency Young & Rubicam, features a 30-second ad that has a camera panning across a frozen Canadian lake, where one sees evidence that hockey games were once played. The camera pans past footprints in the snow, skate marks, and a goalie stick. Popular Canadian actor Gordon Pinsent does voiceover, reciting portions of the Heinz Ross poem, "Alive In All We Are."

"This campaign is designed to capture the emotional connection that exists between Canada and the game of hockey," said Brian Jennings, NHL EVP, marketing, in a statement. He said the images of a frozen neighborhood pond and the words of the poem "illustrate the timeless tradition of playing hockey outdoors that is part of so many childhoods for Canadian fans and NHL players."

An English-language campaign will run in the U.S. on NBC, Versus and NHL Network, while RDS will air the French version of the commercial, including during its Sunday, Feb. 6 broadcast of the Super Bowl. Both spots will continue to air on regional sports networks, in-arenas, NHL.com and social media platforms through the Feb. 20 broadcast of the 2011 Tim Hortons NHL Heritage Classic.

The League is also supporting with print, radio, digital banners, social media outreach on Facebook and Twitter, and in-store elements in sporting goods outlets. The point-of-purchase elements will also be in the "NHL Powered by Reebok" store in New York.